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DARK PHOENIX
Director: Simon Kinberg Cast: James McAvoy, Sophie Turner, Nicholas Hoult, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, Tye Sheridan, Jessica Chastain, Alexandra Shipp, Evan Peters, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Scott Shepherd MPAA
Rating: Running Time: 1:53 Release Date: 6/7/19 |
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Review by Mark Dujsik | June 6, 2019 The stakes of Dark Phoenix seem relatively low, considering that the conflict revolves around a mutant who develops seemingly limitless power and has difficulty controlling said power. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, since the story doesn't involve some grand threat to the world or the galaxy or the entire universe. We've seen that move pulled so many times as a quick and easy way to raise the stakes of a plot that we should just be thankful for the respite. Well, technically, this story does involve such a conflict, but that's only because of a group of villains who feel shoehorned into this tale, in order for there to be a danger beyond our hero-turned-omnipotent threat. Those villains, though, register so minimally during the course of the story that they might as well not exist. Would this latest entry in the X-Men franchise—the second time this particular story has been told within it—be better without the random aliens, trying to exploit and harness the cosmic power within one of the team's mutants? It probably would have been. Eliminating them definitely would have allowed the filmmakers more time to explore how the transformation of Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) into the Phoenix affects her and her fellow mutant allies. Despite the problem of the aliens, writer/director Simon Kinberg, who penned the previous two X-Men movies and makes his feature directorial debut here, deserves some credit for a few things. First of all, this isn't a simple rehash of X-Men: The Last Stand, which was the first time this particular story was adapted for the screen (Kinberg co-wrote that entry, by the way), with a new cast. Second, the reason the stakes feel low here is primarily because the movie does focus on Jean—her confusion over her new powers and the realization that her life with the X-Men has been a lie—and how her compatriots react to seeing their friend being tormented by some unknown force. Third, this is definitely an improvement over the previous entry in this franchise, which seemed in imminent danger of being lost to the temptation of simply providing the generic, routine stuff of so many superhero movies. Kinberg tries something different with this installment. It's fairly low-key, compared to what we've seen in this series specifically and in superhero tales in general. The biggest action sequence, featuring an extra-orbital rescue of astronauts from a space shuttle, arrives at the beginning, and after that, there are only small skirmishes, until a hastily established climax aboard a moving train. The rest of the story is devoted to understanding Jean's state of mind, tarnished by some cloud of energy that infects her during the space mission and by the knowledge that her mentor/guardian has been lying to her since they met, and to seeing these established characters, as well as their relationship, be challenged by this new reality. After Jean absorbs the energy cloud, she undergoes a change that no one—not her mind-reading mentor Charles Xavier (James McAvoy), her laser-eyed boyfriend Scott Summers (Tye Sheridan), or any of the other X-Men—can comprehend. Upon discovering the truth that one of her parents is still alive, she goes on the run, and Charles' decision to block Jean's past trauma and his intentions for the X-Men are questioned by old friends Hank McCoy (Nicholas Hoult), who can turn into a blue beast, and Raven (Jennifer Lawrence), a shapeshifter. One almost wants to stop here, or better, one wishes Kinberg had stopped at this point with the setup. Instead, we're also introduced to an alien race, nearly destroyed by the energy cloud. With their leader Vuk (Jessica Chastain), the aliens are looking for Jean in order to get her newfound powers for reasons that are explained as well and make as much sense as one would expect from villains who feel as if they were inserted into the screenplay as an afterthought. It would be overly simplistic to assert that this plot thread single-handedly ruins the movie, but even so, it certainly feels that way. On the one hand, we get scenes of a stubborn Charles, who has become something of a superstar with a direct line to the President, facing the reality that his ego might have gotten in the way of protecting his students-turned-superheroes. On the other hand, we get Vuk and her hench-aliens looking vaguely menacing. In one moment, we're seeing how Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender), the former Magneto, has become the peaceful leader of a mutant commune, and a bit later, Vuk offers Jean a bunch of back story to explain the aliens' motives. Basically, we're watching the imprecise mashing together of two very different concepts for how the story of Dark Phoenix could be told. One, which treats its established characters with enough respect to see them from a perspective we hadn't previously considered, seems like a logical step forward for this series and these superheroes. The other, which provides a secondary threat for the heroes and feels like the standard-issue superhero conflict, seems like many backward steps. The second one not only is unnecessary but also gets in the way of the better idea. Copyright © 2019 by Mark Dujsik. All rights reserved. |
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(for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action including some
gunplay, disturbing images, and brief strong language)
